Lottery Ticket

My father always told me buying lottery tickets was a waste of money.

“But dad, somebody always wins, right?” I would tell him.

“All you’re buying is dreams. The chances of winning are so slight...”

“Oh, I know it, but don’t you think dreams are good value for my money?”

Dad laughed at me.

“I suppose you’re right. What a bleak world it would be if people didn’t have dreams,” he said and went back to his newspaper.

Maybe that was the conversation that prompted me to buy a ticket that day. On my way back from school I stopped at a convenience store and bought the ticket that would win me many millions of dollars. The sweet old lady in the store patted my hand and wished me luck, and for some reason, I felt happy. Sure, it was a long shot, but why shouldn’t I win? Others had hit the jackpot, why couldn’t I?

It was a beautiful sunny day for September and even though the leaves were falling from the trees, I enjoyed my walk to the bus more than ever before. Everything seemed sharper and more brilliant on that day.

I gave into daydreaming, and as I walked along, I built castles in the air. What would I do when my ship came in? Note, I was thinking when, rather than If. Of course, I would pay off my debt to the university but then what? I thought about it for a while and decided I would buy a bigger house for my parents, one with a huge garden. Dad would like that because he was an inveterate gardener. Then I would buy all the latest appliances for my mom’s kitchen so she wouldn’t have to work with the old ones which were always breaking down. For myself, a small car perhaps, that way I wouldn’t have to take the bus ever again. A station wagon for my mom to make it easier for her to go shopping. A motorcycle for my younger brother, with a helmet of course. And a computer for my young sister. She had always yearned for one, but my parents said they couldn’t afford it yet. MY dog, Julius, would get a new dog house, the best pet food and a new collar, studded with diamonds.

Yes, I thought with contentment, those things would make my family happy. After I got off the bus which took me close to my door, I stopped off at the butchers and bought the best tenderloin steaks money could buy because my allowance was burning a hole in my pocket. Would dad ever be surprised! As a rule we could only afford steaks on Sundays. From here on it would be nothing

but steaks, steaks, steaks, every day.

I took the ticket out of my pocket just to look at it. There lay my entire fortune and the happiness of my family in my palm. I returned the ticket to its original place and made sure my pocket was secure.

As I entered the house, I decided not to tell anybody about my delicious secret. My great winnings would come as a wonderful surprise.

“Hi, Mom,” I said as I entered my house. “I’ve got something for you.”

I handed her the wrapped package and she asked what it was.

“Steaks for tonight,” I said shrugging out of my blazer.

She looked surprised.

“Steaks on a Wednesday?” she asked with a smile.

“My treat,” I said. “I know how much Dad likes steak.”

“Why, thank you, darling. You must have saved up for this,” Mom said as she put the steaks into the refrigerator. “I was just collecting clothes to take to the dry cleaner, so would you please check your room to see if anything needs to go?”

“Sure, I’ll be right back,” I said and left the kitchen. I went to my room and decided I might as well send all my t-shirts and slacks. I had forgotten to do it last week, so the bundle was big. Then I realized I had to leave some clothes out for tomorrow’s classes and laughed at myself for being so absent minded.

“I’ll carry the clothes to the car for you, Mom,” I said and went out. Mom handed me the other bundles she had collected and asked me to put those into the car as well.

“Dinner will be a few minutes late because I have to get to the dry cleaners while they are still open,” Mom said.

I went upstairs again to relax with television. I heard mom moving around in the hall and called down to her, “Do you need any help?”

“No, I just have a few things to add to the laundry,” mom said.

I said okay and turned my attention to the movie I’d wanted to watch all week.

Next thing I knew, Mom was calling me for supper and I realized she must have

gone and returned without my even noticing.

“I made the steaks medium rare, just the way you like them,” Mom said, smiling

at Dad.

Dad showed his appreciation by cutting off a piece and chewing it while he

smiled at me.

I was startled when Dad said,

“I wonder if anybody we know is going to win the jackpot tonight? They’re announcing the results later.”

After dinner was over I went upstairs to watch the Lottery results. I knew the numbers by heart because they were the birthdays of my Mom, brother and sister.

When the numbers were announced, my first reaction was disbelief. But the numbers were repeated, and there could be no mistake, they were my numbers.

I rushed to the hall closet to get the Lottery ticket from my blazer pocket.

The blazer wasn’t there. “Hey, Mom, what happened to my blazer?” I shouted.

“Oh, I saw it had some stains on it, so I took it to the dry cleaners with all the other clothes.”

Without saying a word, I bolted out of the house, and ran down the street hoping to get to the dry cleaners before they closed.

When I burst into the dry cleaners, they were just taking my blazer out of the machine.

© Amy Thompson. 2011